{"id":49689,"date":"2026-09-29T17:29:44","date_gmt":"2026-09-29T15:29:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/?p=49689"},"modified":"2026-09-29T17:29:54","modified_gmt":"2026-09-29T15:29:54","slug":"diana-skobina-uzbek-pianist-international-career","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/uzbekistan\/diana-skobina-uzbek-pianist-international-career\/","title":{"rendered":"From Tashkent to the international stage: Diana Skobina brings Uzbek music to new audiences"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"flex flex-col md:flex-row justify-evenly items-center bg-yellow-100 my-20 p-10 space-y-10 subscribe\">\n\t<div class=\"container flex flex-col lg:flex-row justify-between\">\n\t\t<div class=\"flex flex-col w-full lg:w-3\/5 pb-4\">\n\t\t\t<h2 class=\"text-3xl text-secondary font-bold mb-4 text-[#749D02]\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSupport Novastan, the European Central Asia magazine \n\t\t\t<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\tBy supporting Novastan, you are supporting the only English, French and German-language media specialising in Central Asia. We&#8217;re independent and we need your help to stay that way! \n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"flex flex-col w-full lg:w-2\/5 justify-items-center justify-center pb-4\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"rounded-md bg-accent-500 px-10 py-5 text-center w-72 mx-auto\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a class=\"block rounded bg-white p-2 mt-4 font-bold\" href=\"https:\/\/donorbox.org\/soutenir-novastan?language=fr\">Support Novastan<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em><em><em><em><em>Uzbek-born concert pianist Diana Skobina began playing at four and performed with the National Orchestra of Uzbekistan at nine. Now based in the United States, she has performed at venues including Carnegie Hall\u2019s Weill Recital Hall, the Musikverein in Vienna and Walt Disney Concert Hall. As she enters a new stage of her career, Skobina is increasingly looking back to the musical culture that shaped her &#8211; and towards ways of bringing Uzbek and Central Asian composers to wider international audiences.<\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>This article was produced as a paid partnership with Diana Skobina.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For Diana Skobina, music began at home in Tashkent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Her earliest memories of the piano are not of formal lessons or concert halls, but of listening to her mother play Beethoven, Rachmaninoff and composers including Georgy Mushel and Boris Gienko. She remembers sitting nearby, captivated by the sound and thinking simply: <em>I want to be able to play that.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Nuriddin Giyasov Patterns - Diana Skobina - piano\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/1OX-uj6GJXU?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">She began lessons at the age of four. By nine, she was performing with the National Orchestra of Uzbekistan &#8211; an experience she now sees as the moment when music ceased to be something private.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIt was the first time I understood what it actually means to be a performer &#8211; that music isn\u2019t just something you work on alone, it\u2019s something you give to other people,\u201d she tells Novastan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Yet Skobina says there was never a single moment when she consciously decided that the piano would become her life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIt crept up on me gradually. Music became so woven into my everyday life that at some point it stopped being a decision and just became who I was.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Today, that journey has taken her from musical institutions in Tashkent to conservatories in the United States and onto international stages. But as her career has expanded geographically, Skobina says her relationship with Uzbekistan has become more, rather than less, important to her artistic identity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"819\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_2873-1-819x1024.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-49693\" srcset=\"https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_2873-1-819x1024.jpeg 819w, https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_2873-1-240x300.jpeg 240w, https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_2873-1-768x960.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_2873-1.jpeg 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 819px) 100vw, 819px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Diana Skobina began studying the piano in Tashkent at the age of four. Photo: courtesy of Diana Skobina.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A musical education shaped in Tashkent<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Skobina studied at the Uspensky School of Music in Tashkent, where she describes an environment in which musical education was taken seriously from an early age.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Her teachers Tatiana Sotnikova and Guzal Ardashirova gave her what she describes as the fundamentals of her musical education: careful listening, attention to detail, discipline and respect for the score.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cBeing a musician takes discipline, patience and consistent work,\u201d she says. \u201cBut it was never only about discipline for me. It was also where I found curiosity, discovery, real joy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At the State Conservatory of Uzbekistan, where she studied with Professor Elmira Mirkasimova, music gradually changed from a passion into a professional path. Mirkasimova encouraged her to go deeper into structure, phrasing, character and expression &#8211; lessons that Skobina says continue to influence her performances today. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The technical foundations of that education remain central to the way she approaches the piano.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe biggest lesson was that technique should never exist for its own sake. It has to serve the musical idea,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">She learned to pay close attention to sound, articulation, rhythm, structure and character, but also to search beneath the notes for the intention of the composer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cA technically clean performance was never the goal in itself. Every detail has to ultimately serve communication and expression.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When Skobina later continued her education in the United States, she encountered different musical traditions and teaching methods. But she never saw that as a reason to abandon what she had learned in Uzbekistan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI\u2019ve always seen it as something to build on, not replace.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Learning to build an artistic career in the United States<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Moving to the United States required another kind of education.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Skobina says one of the biggest differences she encountered was the expectation that professional musicians must actively shape their own careers rather than concentrating exclusively on artistic development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cBack home, my job was to become the best musician I could be,\u201d she explains. \u201cIn the US, I learned that an artist also has to create their own opportunities &#8211; build relationships, connect with audiences, collaborate, teach, understand the practical side of the profession.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Her studies at the Lynn University Conservatory with Dr Roberta Rust were important in that transition. Rust encouraged her to combine rigorous preparation with greater artistic individuality and to develop her own voice rather than reproduce an established formula.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The experience also pushed Skobina to become more independent professionally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI had to navigate a new culture and a new professional landscape while staying true to myself,\u201d she says. \u201cThat balance &#8211; adapting and growing without losing the foundation I brought with me &#8211; still matters to me today.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">She later continued her training at the Manhattan School of Music and has now completed her postgraduate studies there, working with pianist and educator Dr Wael Farouk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Skobina credits Farouk with encouraging her to listen more deeply to tone and colour, think more carefully about musical structure and interpretation, and approach memorisation in new ways. His influence, she adds, went beyond technique.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWhat touched me just as much was his generosity and genuine care as a teacher,\u201d she says. \u201cHe reminded me that real musicianship and real kindness go hand in hand.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">From Carnegie Hall to the Musikverein<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Skobina\u2019s career has since taken her onto stages including Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall in New York, the Musikverein in Vienna and Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"830\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_9789-1-1-830x1024.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-49695\" srcset=\"https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_9789-1-1-830x1024.jpeg 830w, https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_9789-1-1-767x947.jpeg 767w, https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_9789-1-1-243x300.jpeg 243w, https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_9789-1-1-1245x1536.jpeg 1245w, https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_9789-1-1-1659x2048-1.jpeg 1659w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 830px) 100vw, 830px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Diana Skobina has built an international career while maintaining a strong connection to her musical roots in Uzbekistan. Photo: courtesy of Diana Skobina.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Those performances have inevitably carried symbolic weight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cEach has its own history and atmosphere, and standing on those stages naturally makes me reflect on the journey that got me there,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Yet she is reluctant to identify one venue or performance as the moment everything changed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Rather, her sense of possibility developed gradually &#8211; through concerts, audiences, backstage moments and the accumulated realisation of how far music had carried her from where she began.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe prestige of the hall has never been the most important thing to me,\u201d she says. \u201cWhat matters most is the relationship between the performer, the music and the audience. Even in the most celebrated room in the world, I want to feel that I\u2019m communicating something sincere.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_7583-1024x683.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-49715\" srcset=\"https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_7583-1024x683.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_7583-300x200-1.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_7583-767x512.jpeg 767w, https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_7583.jpeg 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Diana Skobina and Sergei Skobin following a performance at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall in New York. Photo: Krista Lee Photography \u2014 @kristaleephotos.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Uzbekistan remains part of the sound<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That idea of communication is also closely connected to Skobina\u2019s sense of cultural identity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cUzbekistan is deeply present in who I am as an artist,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Growing up in Tashkent meant hearing European classical music alongside the musical traditions of Central Asia. Skobina believes the coexistence of those musical worlds helped shape her sensitivity to melody, rhythm, colour and emotional nuance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">She compares it to language: the sounds heard during childhood can continue to influence the ear long after someone stops consciously thinking about them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI don\u2019t set out to make a piece sound \u2018Uzbek\u2019, or to layer one tradition visibly onto another,\u201d she explains. \u201cIt\u2019s more that my background comes through naturally in how I interpret music, because it\u2019s simply part of who I am.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cCultural identity doesn\u2019t need to be added to the music artificially &#8211; it\u2019s already there, quietly shaping how I listen and how I communicate.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That heritage is increasingly influencing not only how Skobina performs, but also the repertoire she wants to champion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">She names Mukhtar Ashrafi, Georgy Mushel, Mutal Burkhanov, Mirkhalil Mahmudov and Rustam Abdullaev among the Uzbek composers whose work she would like to see reach larger audiences. She is also particularly interested in drawing attention to women composers from Uzbekistan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThere\u2019s so much wonderful music from Uzbekistan and Central Asia that international audiences simply haven\u2019t encountered yet,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For Skobina, the objective is not to present the repertoire primarily as unfamiliar or \u201cexotic\u201d, but to make a case for its artistic value in its own right.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWhen I play music from Uzbekistan for an international audience, it feels personal &#8211; I\u2019m sharing something connected to my home with people who may be hearing it for the first time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">She hopes future concerts, recordings and collaborations can place Central Asian works alongside more established classical repertoire and allow listeners to encounter them as part of a living musical tradition. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">One piano, two pianists<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Collaboration is another important part of Skobina\u2019s musical life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"682\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_2885-682x1024.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-49716\" srcset=\"https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_2885-682x1024.jpeg 682w, https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_2885-768x1152.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_2885-200x300.jpeg 200w, https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_2885.jpeg 853w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 682px) 100vw, 682px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Diana Skobina and Sergei Skobin perform together as the Skobin Duo. Photo: Tomasz Wasiljev.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">She performs with her husband, pianist Sergei Skobin, as the <strong>Skobin Duo<\/strong>, working across four-hand and piano-duo repertoire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"W. A. Mozart - Sonata for Piano Four Hands in C Major, K. 521\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/zD2OUTVG6_A?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Playing together, she says, requires a different form of listening from solo performance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cAs a soloist, you\u2019re responsible for the whole musical architecture yourself. In a duo, you have to build one musical organism together with another person.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That means listening constantly &#8211; to timing, direction, sound, phrasing and the other performer\u2019s intentions &#8211; while retaining an individual artistic voice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Their marriage creates a degree of instinctive understanding, Skobina says, but not necessarily agreement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe don\u2019t always hear things the same way, and I think that\u2019s actually productive. Our conversations about phrasing, tempo, articulation and character often lead us somewhere neither of us would have found alone.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Their repertoire has included Dvo\u0159\u00e1k\u2019s <em>Slavonic Dances<\/em>, the four-hand version of Gershwin\u2019s <em>Rhapsody in Blue<\/em> and music connected to their Central Asian heritage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For Skobina, the experience has also influenced her solo playing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cPlaying chamber music has made me a better listener, and that\u2019s made me a better solo pianist too.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Teaching the next generation<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Teaching occupies an increasingly important place alongside performance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Skobina says the influence of her own teachers &#8211; from Tashkent to Florida and New York &#8211; has convinced her that music education is not simply about transmitting technique.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">She sees traces of each stage of her own education in the way she now works with students: discipline and foundations from her early teachers in Uzbekistan, depth from her conservatory training, individuality from Lynn University and a more developed understanding of sound and structure from Manhattan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But she does not want her students to reproduce her own path.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cEvery student is different,\u201d she says. \u201cSome need technical guidance, some need to learn to trust themselves, some need help finding their own voice, some just need someone to believe in them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI don\u2019t want my students to become copies of me. I want them to become themselves &#8211; independent, thoughtful musicians who can listen, question and make their own artistic decisions. Most of all, I want them to love music.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A new international chapter<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Skobina has recently been welcomed as a signed artist with <strong>Global Art &amp; Culture USA<\/strong>, which she sees as an opportunity to bring several strands of her career together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"812\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_9807-812x1024.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-49692\" srcset=\"https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_9807-812x1024.jpeg 812w, https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_9807-767x968.jpeg 767w, https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_9807-238x300.jpeg 238w, https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_9807.jpeg 1067w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 812px) 100vw, 812px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Diana Skobina was recently welcomed as a signed artist with Global Art &amp; Culture USA. Image: courtesy of Diana Skobina.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">She hopes the new stage will support further international performance, recordings, collaborations and projects combining artistic work with education and cultural exchange.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In particular, she wants to develop programmes introducing audiences to music from Uzbekistan and Central Asia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI\u2019m especially drawn to projects where different cultures meet through music,\u201d she says. \u201cFor me, cultural exchange only really works when it\u2019s grounded in genuine artistic dialogue.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It is also an opportunity to define more clearly what she wants her international artistic identity to represent: an artist whose career and education span countries and institutions, but whose musical roots remain firmly connected to Uzbekistan. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Building that career has not always been straightforward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Skobina speaks openly about the less visible aspects of international musical life: years of preparation, applications, travel, financial pressures, uncertainty and the constant need to create opportunities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_7594-1024x683.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-49717\" srcset=\"https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_7594-1024x683.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_7594-767x512.jpeg 767w, https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_7594-300x200-1.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/09\/IMG_7594.jpeg 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Pianists Diana Skobina and Sergei Skobin, who perform together as the Skobin Duo. American Virtuoso Festival 2023 \u2014 Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThere are moments where you have to be patient with yourself and keep moving even when the path isn\u2019t clear,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But the reward remains essentially the same as it was when she first sat at the piano.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThere\u2019s something incredibly special about sitting down at the piano and feeling, for a moment, that the audience and I are sharing the same emotional space.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cAnd I feel especially fortunate that music has let me stay connected to Uzbekistan while building my life here in the US.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Bringing Central Asian repertoire onto the international stage<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">With her postgraduate studies now completed, Skobina wants the coming years to bring more performance, recording, teaching and collaboration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">She plans to continue expanding her solo repertoire while developing the Skobin Duo and other chamber projects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One of her clearest ambitions is to create programmes and recordings that place familiar works from the European classical repertoire alongside lesser-known music by Uzbek and Central Asian composers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For Skobina, the point is not to separate the two traditions but to allow audiences to hear them in conversation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI\u2019m also drawn to collaborations with musicians from different backgrounds and projects that combine performance, education and cultural exchange,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Her goal is an international career that continues to expand without weakening the link to where it began.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI began this journey as a little girl in Tashkent, and I feel fortunate that the piano has taken me to so many places and introduced me to so many wonderful people.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI don\u2019t know exactly where the next chapter leads, but I know I want to keep learning, performing, sharing music, and representing my culture with warmth and pride.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For Skobina, the idea ultimately returns to the same principle that first drew her to performance as a child: music as something shared.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cMusic has always been about connection for me,\u201d she says. \u201cIt connects me to my childhood in Tashkent, to the traditions I was raised in, to the life and education I built in the US, and to audiences and musicians from many different cultures.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThat\u2019s what I hope to keep doing through my career &#8211; using music to connect people, while carrying forward the culture and heritage that shaped who I am.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-right wp-block-paragraph\">By Mathieu Lemoine, Editor-in-Chief for Novastan English.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>From Tashkent to international concert halls, pianist Diana Skobina reflects on her Uzbek musical roots, classical training, life in the United States and her ambition to bring Central Asian repertoire to wider audiences.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":358,"featured_media":49697,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4670,4939,5],"tags":[5092,5087,5093,5086,5090],"coauthors":[358],"class_list":["post-49689","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-culture-sports","category-interview","category-uzbekistan","tag-carnegie-hall","tag-classical-music","tag-concert-pianist","tag-diana-skobina","tag-manhattan-school-of-music"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49689","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/358"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=49689"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49689\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":49723,"href":"https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49689\/revisions\/49723"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/49697"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49689"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49689"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49689"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=49689"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}